“Free The Nipple is a film, an equality movement, and a mission to empower women across the world. We stand against female oppression and censorship, both in the United States and around the globe” - freethenipple.com

This radical campaign was created in 2014 by Lina Esco as a way to fight the patriarchal views of women and women’s bodies by society, especially through media. It is without question that there is an existing double standard between men and women, and objectifying as well as degrading the female anatomy only makes society conditioned to think that this form of censorship is okay.

The most common assumption about Free The Nipple is that it is only about accepting public nudity; well yes, that is part of it, but some people fail to realize that it is more than just being able to show your breasts to the world. It is about having the choice over your own body. It is about letting mothers breastfeed their infants in public places. It is about treating women better than before and equal to how society treats men.

The way we view women’s breasts needs to be changed in order for society to be one step closer to achieving total gender equality. The over sexualization of women’s bodies contributes to why we don’t view our own biological attributes as natural; instead we are offended and ashamed. This is because of the influence of the patriarchal society. When girls flaunt their bodies, they are slut-shamed and deemed to be “attention whores”, but when men show theirs, and especially if they are seen as physically attractive, they’re praised. Why is that? Why do we prefer one nipple over the other? Why is it too hard for society to accept all types of bodies? This is exactly what Lina Esco wants us to fight for. If we cannot even view a woman’s body as natural, how can we expect a world without sexism in the future? We need to deal with the little issues because if society becomes more open-minded about such campaigns as Free The Nipple, then there is a high chance that they will start becoming more open-minded about other feminist advocacies as well. This is also why we consider Lina as our girl of the month, because without this movement, a big number of people wouldn’t come to the realization that it is important to support and fight for a woman’s right over her own body.

Not to mention, the film [also directed by Lina Esco herself] itself perfectly sums up what she and the rest of the people behind Free The Nipple want to address.

"The film explores the contradictions in our media-dominated society, where acts of violence and killing are glorified, while images of a woman’s body are censored by the FCC and the MPAA. What is more obscene: Violence or a Nipple?” - freethenipple.com

It is true that society is so used to seeing inhumane and violent acts to the point where it is practically normalized, yet a woman’s body is the one perceived as offensive by most people. It’s disappointing that society would rather watch all these other films and shows that dignify violence than to see a woman’s perfectly natural body in person.

Women have been fighting for their rights for centuries, it is time to realize that this modern patriarchal world would crumble if we don’t let women become as free as men. So we thank Lina Esco for her efforts in wanting to attain an equal society.